Warblers anyone?

[clovishound]

I decided to pay a visit to a local Audubon sanctuary yesterday. The Pup and I have been there several times without a lot of success, although we usually went in late fall or winter. The Prothonotary Warblers are supposed to be nesting there this time of year, so I thought I'd try my luck. The Pup was still editing pics from earlier in the week, so I went by myself. Walked around the 1.9 miles of boardwalk over a virgin tupelo, cypress swamp. Got a few pictures and talked to several very nice photographers and bird watchers. Decided to check out the small lake at one end before leaving. A very nice volunteer was taking her break there and clued me into a nest close to the deck. I set up my tripod and dad showed up in a little while to feed the little ones. Mom showed up shortly thereafter. This is the Francis Beidler Forest north of Charleston SC, not to be confused with the Audubon Swamp Garden at Magnolia Plantation that I have been visiting lately.

Mayflies anyone?

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Dad feeding the kids.

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Mom taking her turn.

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[North Country Gal]

World class pics. Outstanding.

[CT_Shooter]

Fabulous photography, CH. Masterful. Thanks for sharing these beautiful images with us.

[clovishound]

I'd have come home with very little had it not been for the tip I got from the volunteer. These small birds are really difficult to get close enough to in order to get decent pics. That 500mm lens just doesn't seem to be long enough most times. Thank goodness for the new AI software that can clean up noisy, over cropped pictures.

[markiver54]

All I can say is, WOW. Those are great pics. Cannot wait to share them with Carol. She does love the birds.
Yours and the Pup's photography are top notch!

[clovishound]

Thanks for all the kind words. I have enjoyed this last year or so of getting back into photography. I have also enjoyed showing them off, I mean sharing them here. I've got a few more I would like to post, but for some reason they don't seem to load properly. I have yet to discern the common thread on why. I've tried exporting them at lower size and resolution, but they still won't load properly.

[markiver54]

Thanks for all the kind words. I have enjoyed this last year or so of getting back into photography. I have also enjoyed showing them off, I mean sharing them here. I've got a few more I would like to post, but for some reason they don't seem to load properly. I have yet to discern the common thread on why. I've tried exporting them at lower size and resolution, but they still won't load properly.

I'm sure you will figure it out, and we look forward to it.

[clovishound]

OK, I tried a couple things, and finally managed to get it to load by stripping the metadata. Not sure why, the metadata should be basically the same, except for the exposure data.

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[markiver54]

Superb!

[clovishound]

Got back out today. The nest close to the deck was empty. Managed a couple shots of the warblers and a couple other critters.

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Colorful damsel fly.

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Barred owl.

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